Twin Celestial Gods

The Demon Monarch held a long black staff in his hand, flanked by ten crimson-armored demon generals. They watched from a distance, allowing the waves of ordinary demons under their command to launch the assault.

Ji Ning and the others understood the pattern. Each time the demon army attacked, they always let the ordinary demons strike first before the demon generals and the Demon Monarch joined the battle. So the period at the beginning, when the Demon Monarch and his generals held back… was absolutely critical. They had to use this time to kill as many ordinary demons as possible.

The slaughter was furious.

Boom. Ji Ning charged back and forth, using his divine body to send demons flying in all directions. At other times, he executed a sword-art that resembled a black hole, drawing the demons to one side and leading them astray. Regardless of the method, he absolutely could not allow these demons to completely entangle and bind him.

“Interesting.”

The Demon Monarch extended a long, thin claw and pointed at Ji Ning. “Look. That new Celestial God, his sword-art is quite formidable. He’s the fastest killer among them.”

“His divine body is very powerful. The weapons of our children don’t faze him at all.”

“His sword technique is bizarre.”

The crimson demon generals at his side commented.

“According to what Netherflame said, this new Celestial God is called Darknorth,” the Demon Monarch said with a laugh. “A-San. Go. Play with him.”

“Yes.” A burly demon general, holding a shield in each hand, acknowledged the order and charged straight at Ji Ning. As this crimson demon general charged forward, the ordinary demons parted to clear a path. In just a few breaths, the twin-shield demon general had already arrived before Ji Ning.

“Ji Ning, careful!”

“Brother Darknorth, careful!”

“It’s the Twin Shield General!”

The other nine Celestial Gods all sent urgent transmissions. Ji Ning’s heart also tightened. Among the generals under the Demon Monarch’s command, based on their repeated experiences over the countless trials, Feiyou and the other Celestial Gods had naturally memorized many of them. Each general had their own unique characteristics. This ‘Twin Shield General’ was particularly renowned for his strength and defense.

“Among all the generals under the Demon Monarch, this Twin Shield General should be the one most capable of countering me,” Ji Ning’s thought flashed. In the next instant, the fully crimson-skinned Twin Shield General had arrived.

“Die!”

Wielding his two shields, he charged directly forward in a crushing line of attack. The two shields almost completely covered his body. Ji Ning possessed formidable sword techniques, but he simply couldn’t touch the enemy.

“Heavenbreaker Stance!” Ji Ning charged forward as well, his twin swords instantly becoming heavy as mountains as he smashed them down with the momentum of Pangu splitting heaven and earth apart.

BANG!

BANG!

Two consecutive sword blows crashed down onto the shield. Yet the demon general simply pushed through the shield wall and drove towards Ji Ning. It was clear that in terms of raw strength, Ji Ning held no advantage. At this moment, the mass of ordinary demons around them were also madly attacking Ji Ning, causing him to fall into a panic. Only now did he deeply understand that the demons he had been easily slaughtering moments before… had now become a true threat.

He had to deal with a demon general, and at the same time, a single random spear or fork thrust from an ordinary demon was enough to cause him serious trouble.

“Three Heads, Six Arms.” Ji Ning’s body flickered as he manifested the divine ability. Instantly, six streaks of sword-light danced around him, clearing the surrounding ordinary demons in one sweep while simultaneously fending off the Twin Shield General.

“A-Si. You go too.” The distant Demon Monarch gave the order.

“Yes.”

The crimson demon general called ‘A-Si’ had six arms, and each of his six arms held a whip. He howled as he charged towards Ji Ning. His arrival immediately put Ji Ning in dire straits. If it were just the demon general ‘A-Si’ alone, Ji Ning could handle him and even gain the upper hand.

But with the Twin Shield General as the main force, and the ‘A-Si’ demon general’s six whips lashing out, his sword-art became difficult to execute. The ordinary demons also surged forward relentlessly, trying to bind Ji Ning.

“Aoooouuuu~~~~” The two demon generals and the ocean of ordinary demons attacked wildly, like a tidal wave drowning Ji Ning.

“Not good.”

“I’m going.”

The Celestial God closest to Ji Ning, the massively built Zhenbu, let out a great roar and charged over, heading straight for the Twin Shield General. The Twin Shield General was still attacking Ji Ning, and was forced to divert one of his shields to block the ferocious Zhenbu god.

“Get lost!” Zhenbu god’s longspear swept out. A surging vortex appeared on the tip of the spear, slipping in along the bottom edge of the shield before suddenly jerking upwards.

This upward force was too much even for the Twin Shield General to withstand. He was sent flying uncontrollably into the air.

“Now!”

A streak of sword-light flashed.

Starseizing Hand!

Swordforce!

Heartforce!

Blood Drop Stance of the Brightmoon Sword-Art! Ji Ning’s fastest sword, his most explosive sword, pierced directly into the chest of the Twin Shield General as he flew up, leaving a gap in his defense. “Ahhh!” The Twin Shield General glared at Ji Ning in fury, then dissipated into nothingness. Even his shields vanished.

“Excellent!”

“Well done!”

“One of them is dead!” The nine Celestial Gods were all overjoyed. They hadn’t expected that Ji Ning, pushed to the brink, would suddenly kill the Twin Shield General.

The truth was that Ji Ning had already been preparing to erupt when he was forced into a corner earlier. But even if he erupted in that situation, he would at most have forced the enemy back. Fortunately, ‘Zhenbu god’ had intervened, creating a flaw in the Twin Shield General’s defense, allowing Ji Ning to fully unleash his power and kill him instantly.

“Beautiful.” Zhenbu god looked at Ji Ning and laughed heartily. “Even if I hadn’t stepped in, these demons wouldn’t have been able to do anything to Brother Darknorth.”

But Ji Ning felt conflicted.

The truth was, since arriving at Wanshan Island, when dealing with these nine Celestial Gods—especially Zhenbu god and Yichang god of the Seamless Gate—a knot had remained in his heart. He knew very well that outside, the two major factions were mortal enemies! But here in the Moon Underwater Abyss, these Celestial Gods knew nothing of what was happening beyond. In particular, these nine, after facing trial after trial, had long since become sworn brothers in life and death.

“Regardless… even if they are Seamless Gate, they are still my brothers.” Ji Ning looked at Zhenbu god, whose eyes held concern and passionate warmth, and thought to himself.

…

With the Twin Shield General dead, the six-armed demon general hurriedly retreated.

The Demon Monarch watching from afar furrowed his brow.

“Hmph.” The Demon Monarch frowned and commanded, “Attack.”

The remaining eight demon generals under his command grew excited and charged forward en masse. The Demon Monarch gently stroked the golden gourd at his waist, then laughed coldly. Gripping his long black staff, he strode towards Ji Ning. “You deal with the other nine. That Celestial God, Darknorth… he’s mine.”

“Yes.”

“That Northern God is dead meat.”

“He’s finished.”

The demon generals each pounced on their chosen opponents. Aside from Ji Ning, who was unfamiliar to them, the other nine Celestial Gods were very well known. They could choose which Celestial God to fight. But Ji Ning and the other Celestial Gods had no such luxury of choice. They were surrounded by a sea of ordinary demons, and their speed was far slower than the demon generals.

“Careful, everyone. They’re all coming.” Feiyou god shouted loudly. This was the real critical moment. Once the Demon Monarch himself joined the fray, casualties were highly likely.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

One demon general after another clashed with the Celestial Gods, while the surrounding demons continued to attack from the flanks.

Ji Ning, however, found himself facing the most terrifying opponent of all: the Demon Monarch.

“You actually managed to kill A-San.” The Demon Monarch held his long black staff. His overwhelming aura pressed down on Ji Ning, and even the ground trembled as he strode forward. “I want to see just how strong you really are. All of you, fall back.”

Whoosh. The surrounding demons all retreated.

Suddenly, the Demon Monarch broke into a sprint. His aura was astonishing. With a single leap, he pounced on Ji Ning, raising his staff with both hands and bringing it down towards Ji Ning’s head.

“Block!” Using his Three Heads, Six Arms, Ji Ning raised all six divine swords to meet the blow.

BOOM!

A crater appeared in the ground. Ji Ning had been smashed deep into the earth.

The Demon Monarch grabbed his black staff with one hand and viciously stabbed it down into the hole! The momentum was still terrifying.

BOOM! The ground nearby split open. A streak of sword-light flew out, carrying Ji Ning within it.

“Such overwhelming power.” Ji Ning’s heart trembled. This Demon Monarch was far too strong—far stronger than himself. He had used all six divine swords to block that single strike, and he had even channeled Heartforce into one of the swords. It was useless! He was still crushed by the enemy’s power. The gap was simply too vast.

The Demon Monarch stomped the ground and shot into the air, easily catching up to the retreating Ji Ning. The Demon Monarch held an absolute advantage over Ji Ning in both strength and speed.

BOOM!

BANG!

Ji Ning was sent flying.

Then knocked down.

Then sent tumbling.

But having trained the Nine Cycles Arcane Art to the ninth level, the Demon Monarch couldn’t actually injure Ji Ning. All Ji Ning had to do was find a way to prevent himself from being captured. His sword-art was also extremely formidable. With his Three Heads, Six Arms, ordinary demons simply couldn’t get close, denying the Demon Monarch the chance to use his golden gourd to collect him.

“Being manhandled like this is truly infuriating. This Demon Monarch’s strength is absurd.” Ji Ning’s expression suddenly changed.

“Kill!”

“Damn it!”

Facing the assault of nine demon generals and countless demons, Feiyou god, Zhenbu god, and the other seven Celestial Gods were also trapped, as if stuck in a quagmire. They had to remember that even Ji Ning, faced with two demon generals and a host of demons, was pushed to his limits. The Demon Monarch seemed powerful, but he was only stronger and faster. As long as one could block him, the worst that would happen was being sent flying. There was no danger of death.

During the previous trial, it was Feiyou god who had held off the Demon Monarch. Feiyou god’s defense was far superior to Ji Ning’s, and he had managed to endure the Demon Monarch’s assault.

This time… the Demon Monarch had chosen Ji Ning. Clearly, he disliked dealing with the extremely troublesome, defense-specialist Feiyou god.

As time passed, the other nine Celestial Gods were also in danger! Being perpetually on the losing side, given enough time, they would eventually fall. Based on past experience, these demons only relaxed their attack intensity once one of the Celestial Gods died.

Each of the ten Celestial Gods had their own specialties.

Take Yunhen god, for example. His movement technique was incredible, far surpassing Ji Ning and the other nine. Surrounded by the demon army, he flitted about like an unpredictable cloud, constantly shifting and killing.

Feiyou god, meanwhile, was the undisputed master of defense. Even the Demon Monarch couldn’t do anything to him. Naturally, he was stable. But while his defense was formidable, his offense was weak. He was still surrounded and unable to aid the others.

After a fierce struggle…

Dongxu god and Zhenbu god both encountered crisis! Although the other Celestial Gods had helped them two or three times, they couldn’t be there every moment.

“Damn it.” Zhenbu god roared in anger.

“These demons.” Dongxu god was growing frantic as well. Both of them were powerful offensively, but now, surrounded and under constant assault, they were in constant peril. Wounds appeared one after another on the bodies of Dongxu god and Zhenbu god.

“Dongxu and Zhenbu are about to break.” Feiyou god sent a frantic, roaring transmission, struggling with all his might to charge towards them.

“Feiyou? Don’t even think about getting past.”

The demon general wielding chains cackled strangely. A series of chains danced through the air, lashing out and blocking Feiyou god’s path.

“Darknorth.” Wuqi god was also frantic, sending a mental transmission.

BOOM!

The Demon Monarch swung his staff again.

Ji Ning was sent flying backward. He, too, was growing desperate. “I can’t get close.” In front of the Demon Monarch, merely holding on was the best he could manage.

PUFF!

A saber blade sliced across Dongxu god’s abdomen, leaving a wound. Blood appeared, but his divine power quickly surged to repair the damage.

“My divine power is almost exhausted.” Dongxu god sent a mental message. Being wounded again and again consumed far more power.

“Dongxu!”

“Brother Dongxu!”

The other Celestial Gods were frantic. Once his divine power was completely depleted, no one would be able to save him.

…

In the quiet meditation chamber.

A hundred-zhang formation of golden light was below him.

A hundred-zhang formation of black light was above him.

Ji Ning sat cross-legged in mid-air at the center. The Nine-Yang Magma and Iceheart Marrow, now formed into two spheres, floated before him. A vast amount of essence from the Nine-Yang Magma continuously flowed into the golden light formation, while the essence of the Iceheart Marrow flew into the black light formation. By now, the two spheres had shrunk significantly.

“Let’s stop for now.”

With a thought from Ji Ning, the two formations slowly dissipated into nothingness. The two shrunken spheres of Nine-Yang Magma and Iceheart Marrow flew back into the distant碧玉 and red jade gourds.

Ji Ning landed on the ground.

“Although I could continue to strengthen my Pure Yang Golden Core, I have to stop for now. I’ll resume the process after the battle.” Ji Ning examined his internal body. The Pure Yang Golden Core was spinning slowly within him, its aura already dozens of times stronger than before. The spatial realm within the core was also far more vast, and the surging, pure, and highly refined Pure Yang ki stormed within him.

The Icefire Golden Core Refining Art required a very gentle and slow refinement process. As the Icefire essence continued to temper it, the Pure Yang Golden Core would constantly improve and transform. Of course… it could be stopped at any time, as it was a gentle, gradual enhancement.

A Daofather’s golden core was as different from a Pure Yang True Immortal’s golden core as heaven was from earth!

A Daofather’s golden core and a peak first-tier True Immortal’s golden core of the Nine Chaos Regions were on the same level. If Ji Ning could elevate his core to the second tier, he should be considered a half-step Daofather. He had been cultivating for over twenty days, and he was close to his limit. It could be considered a second-tier golden core. Of course, a few more days of tempering would bring him to his absolute limit.

“Let’s see just what kind of power this second-tier golden core can unleash.” With a thought, Ji Ning vanished from the Immortal estate and reappeared on Wanshan Island.

On Wanshan Island.

The desperate battle between the Celestial Gods and the demons had reached its most frenzied peak. And then, right next to Ji Ning, who had just been sent flying by a blow, another Ji Ning suddenly appeared.

Two Ji Nings hung simultaneously in mid-air. This sight stunned both the Celestial Gods on the battlefield and the large group of distant Celestial Gods watching tensely.

“Two Darknorth Celestial Gods?”